#april witch

[arielsbx]

“April Witch #2“ (Diseño de Personajes / Concept Art)

Otro Concept art del cuento April Witch de Ray Bradbury, con el diseño de personaje de Ann y Cecy

[clouds-of-wings]

Desirée lies in a hospital bed thinking, dreaming. Born severely disabled, she cannot walk or talk, but she has other capabilities. Desirée is an April witch, clairvoyant and omniscient, traveling through time and space into the world denied her. The woman who gave Desirée up at birth subsequently took in three foster daughters, who know nothing of the existence of their fourth “sister.” Sensing that her own time is short, Desirée has decided that one of the others has lived the life she herself deserved. One day, each of the three women receives a mysterious letter that forces her to examine her past and her present—setting in motion a complex fugue of memory, regret, and confrontation that builds to a shattering climax.

April Witch created a furor upon its original publication in Sweden. Addressing themes of mother-daughter relationships, competition between women, and the failures of Sweden’s postwar welfare state, it is foremost a thrillingly written and fascinating story.

I’ve finished Aprilhäxan! The fifth Swedish book I’ve read, and the first I actually enjoyed. It’s such a good book, seriously go read it. It’s been translated and all.

Edit: Oh yeah, now that I read reviews I realize that I should perhaps mention that the main themes are child abuse, terrible neglect, alcoholism, life-long suffering and resentment, the Swedish welfare system’s mistreatment/neglect of people living in care homes, and other forms of violence. But the characters feel very real and I was always curious what would happen next. That’s why i say it’s a great book.

Also the description above doesn’t really do Desirée justice. She recreationally reads about quantum physics and philosophy, has the most lucid view on the world of the four “sisters”, and, perhaps most importantly, isn’t entirely “good” either, just like all the other characters. It would have been easy to place her morally above her sisters and make her a pitiable inspirational character. Instead she’s someone who fights very hard for very little, and she doesn’t necessarily fight fair. Just... like all the other characters I suppose. As I said, the characters feel quite real to me.

[arielsbx]

“April Witch #1“ (Diseño de Personaje / Concept Art) 

Un concept art basado en el cuento de Ray Bradbury con el mismo nombre

[ziggyrinz]

My first book in English, from like 15-16 years ago. Feeling nostalgic))

[thecurseiscomeuponme]

April Witch by Majgull Axelsson

Axelsson displays the power of the unreliable narrator in a rarely reliable manner. This particular story is told from the perspective of four women who are loosely bonded as sisters, and yet they exquisitely fall apart. The primary (and I would argue, one of the least reliable narrators) is that of Desiree, as she is so aptly named. Her critique of her sisters, Christina, Margareta, and Birgitta is beyond troublesome, yet seductive. One wants to believe that Christina is beyond the most reliable of all of the voices but as the novel progresses, her perspective becomes more and more subjective, therefore, more problematic.

Axelsson has created an interesting, piecemeal approach to storytelling that is all at once captivating and seductive. While the reader may wish to feel empathy for most of the characters, Axelsson rarely offers the privilege. I would highly, highly recommend this book to anyone that finds themselves absorbed by a quality tale told from a variety of perspectives.